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24 July 2016

One of the things that I noticed when I arrived at university aside from the fact that I was twice the age of some of my classmates was that I had to be careful with the opinions I expressed.

The benefit of attending when I was 40 was that I had learned a ton of lessons where the rubber hits the road and for me it was while twisting wrenches in the army. No one in my social circle had ever attended university.

I pissed off my professor one day when he shared a bit of information and I honestly and naively commented that "I don't see things that way."

I got the "HOW DARE YOU" stare. Rightly so I supposed, he had been extrapolating from data for more than 11 years. I had merely been living life or acquiring data in a different way for 40.

Yes, I say that now with tongue in cheek. Some of the best gifts I have ever been given have been by people who have pissed me off. I hope he feels the same.

The university experience is not one that I would trade in a million years. It has value beyond what I could have imagined.. I feel it was a real supplement to the lessons I had learned. It helped me to make sense of my life experiences. this resulted in me doing much better in life. University is a blessing - not the only route to a job but a real benefit to me in my business. It also helped me to understand people better.

I meet people who are out there without the benefit of education and people with biases against people with degrees. I have a foot in both canoes so to speak - a tradeswoman with a degree helps me to connect to a broader range of people. It also helps me to build bridges between people where the lack of information each has is a barrier to connection.

You see, learning where the rubber hits the road has a ton of value that is often undervalued in academia. That's sad because they could be rocking if they waited to get a degree after they had a little "experiential learning" under their belts. Just sayin'

I would recommend getting a degree to anyone - I can't explain the benefit of a broader mind, a more curious mind, a mind that has been trained to look at things from a new perspective - that's the real benefit of my university degree and I would indeed do it again. It's likely I will - I do consider myself a knowledge addict with an opinion.

From the perspective of business - the S T R E T C H I N G of the mind that took place by learning a substantial amount of information in my 40s complimented by the school of hard knocks experiences have been.....words escape me - it's da bomb.

21 July 2016

I believe in being generous but not to a fault. I love the concept of win/win and common sense is....well common sense.

If you're thinking of going into a joint venture with a friend, take the time to construct a contract. I'm not saying that you have a contract for a day at the beach. I'm suggesting that you have a contract where there is a certain amount of risk and you want a plan in place so that you do not get caught holding the bag.

If you feel kind of icky about the thought of a contract, you probably need one.

Yes, these are lessons I have learned the hard way. Once burnt, twice shy. It's not fun to take anyone to smalls claim court - it's downright painful.

Get the contract out of the way in the early days when you're excited and feeling good about the relationship. It's the best time for communication. After all when things go wrong, we will be feeling hurt and it's tougher to have tough communications. .

Difficult conversations are ten times more difficult for some of us.

When you have it in writing, you have thought about what could go wrong when you are in your very generous frame of mind. What I have found when I collaborate with other generous minded folks is that we have a tendency to think of ways to protect one another when we do this exercise.

If you can't think of what can go wrong, ask other people. Sometimes they are more objective. Always choose folks you can trust. You will be so glad you did.

8 July 2016

We all have mornings where we wake up in a funk. This is especially true when things aren't going well and even more than true we suffer from depression and anxiety. We all have our little nuances and reasons for not waking up in a great mood.

A wise sage suggested this morning routine to me and I have modified it to meet my needs. I credit that sage. It is a simple process.

As a person who loves to work, I have a tendency to want to jump out of bed and get at 'er. But I work smarter when I follow this simple but effective morning routine to kickstart my day.

10 Minutes of Movement
Be creative. Moving is such a subjective term. For some it may mean running, for you it may mean a free style dance. The idea is to move with intention and to be present.

You will find it much more beneficial if you are mindful when you move. Feel each part of the body as you engage that muscle. Follow the flow of your fingers as they move. Enjoy the release of energy as you connect with your vitality. You're about to begin a magical day - act like you appreciate that even if you're not quite there yet. Move with purpose and grace.

10 Minutes of Writing

Get a pen and paper and write. Not just any writing. Be purposeful in your writing. When I first started writing about 15 years ago, I would actually write about my worries and about the things that went wrong in my life. I don't do that any more although there is something to be said for the cathartic value.

Instead I write about the "what if". What would the world look like if what I was going through right now were solved. What will my day look like if things go the way that I want them to? Write about a best case scenario for a complicated problem you are solving.

This isn't an official document that you're going to hand in to some senior official. This is your "kickstart my day" writing. If you're not into the written work, purchase a voice recorder and vocalise your ideas.

On Fridays' I'm making my writing a blog post - like today.

10 Minutes of Reading
I keep a book handy and when I hop out of bed in the morning, it's right there ready to go. Have a bok ready for this particular purpose. I don't pick it up at any other time. It's my morning "kickstart my day" read.

Read something inspiring. Learn something new. Make it relevant, Be engaged. Maybe reading before you write is a better option for you. You choose!!!

Choose the right book - learn something new. Not sure what to read - ask around. People who live with intention can always recommend something wonderful.

Try this for a week and then let me know what happens. I really do want to hear!!!

1 July 2016

The journey for PeopleCan was a journey filled with painful moments - I kid you not. Along the way as I was morphing into what I have become (I know that I am not done morphing) I would often get asked what I did.